Method of and apparatus for dehydrating fruits, vegetables, and similar articles.



G. H. BENJAMIN. METHOD 0F AND APPARATUS FOR DEHYDRATING FRUITS, IIEGETAIBLES, AND SIMILAR ARTICLES. APPLICATION FILEDy lULY I0. |911.

Patented Apr. 30, 1918.

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METHOD OF AND A'PJPRTUS FOB DEtHYDRATING FRUITS, VEGETBLES, i MTICLES..

Specification of Lettera Patent.

Patented dpr. 381,181@

Application led July 10, 1917. aerial No. 179,643.

To all whom it may concern.'

'lBe it known that ll, Gannon Humana lnn- JAMIN, a citizen of the United States, residing at New ork, in the county and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful improvements in Methods of andi. Apparatus for Dehydrating Fruits, Vegetables, and Similar Articles, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to a method of and apparatus for dehydrating fruits, vegetables and similar articles.

The object of my invention is to accomplish quick and uniform drying of the articles under treatment.

Dehydration. of fruits, vegetables and similar articles is usually accomplishedby sending a current of warm air, containing more or less water, over the article to be de-I hydrated thereby causing exudation of moisture from the article and the absorption of such moisture by the moving air current. Manifestly, if an air current containing say 50% of moisture, is passed over an article, and the air current absorbs moisture, the percentage of moisture will be increased my to 70%. If now this air current, containing 70%, is sent over another similar article, its moisture absorbing capacity is decreased, for two reasons: First, because the amount of moisture in the air current has been increased, and second, because its temperature has been decreased, thereby reducing its absorbing capacity per unit.

Ordinarily, air used in dehydrating, is caused to pass once over the entire body of y the article to be dehydrated, and then emitted into the atmosphere; or the whole body of air may be given an initial temperaturel and then, as described in my prior Patent No. 1,225,211, dated May 8, 1917, a portion of such air boosted to a required temperature, before being passed over the article.

' Economically, it is desirable that the air used in dehydration should be passed over:

.the article to be dehydrated a number of times, and that the temperature and absorbing value of the air shall be the same at each transmission. The temperature of the air can be maintained by boosting, that is, adding additional heat units to compensate for. the loss occurring in each passage over the article treated, and the absorbing value of the air transmitted can be maintained by increasing the volume of the air directly in yinto an air trun horizontal partitions 20-22.

proportion to its absorption of moisturelbyA the air.

To accomplish the above last stated re-V sult, I have designed the apparatus illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in

Fig. 3 is a section corresponding to Fig.

1, showing a modified method of boostm the air.

Referring to the drawings: 5 indicates a casing, which may be formed of any suitable non-conducting material or materials. 6, a pump through which air is discharged 8,'an exhaust trunk connected tothe inlet of the pump 6. Situated between the air trunk 7 jand exhaust trunk 8, are dehydrating cells 9. Three such cells are shown, marked respectively, A B, C." rllwo cells, A and B are supposed to form one unit. '.lhese cells are adapted to contain a series of trays l0 having perforated bottoms 11 supported in guides 12. These trays are shown arranged in groups of three, one group above the other andin staggered relation.

Surrounding the whole of the trays 10 is a casing having a top member 13, side members 111 and bottom member 15, the latter of which forms a part of the top of the ex-I of trays. Located at the other end of' each group of trays are a series of steam ipes or other form of heating device 19. ep ratlng the respective groups of trays arel tions 20 are respectively located between fifth and sixth groups of cells, and the partitions 22 are respectively located between the second and third and the fourth and aan emitan the rst and second, third and fourth and l fifth groups of cells, and form the bottom of the sixth group of cells and the top of exhaust' air trunk 8. 'llhe partitions 20--22 generally have projections 23 extending upwardly and 21 extending downwardly.

The side members 14 have formed in them, openings 24 leading into spaces 25,.

, and these openings are provided with valves 26, designed to control the size the openf,

l4.0 l coils.

trays, then over thel steam pipes 19 and into the space 25. Simultaneously, air is intro- 1'5 duced through an o ening 24. The plates 21 and 23 act as ba es to mix the air introduced through openings 16 and 24.

v It is assumed that the air passing over 'the steam pipes 19 will `heat itand boost 20 it'to'the temperature of the airintroduced through the air trunk 7, and that the heated all' introduced through the opening 2f1 will increase the Volume of air in proportion to the increase of humidity in the air intro- '25 diced'through the opening 16. The Whole body of rair then passes over the second ,group of trays to be again heated, and air 4introduced as before, and so on through the "di'erent groups of trays until finally dis- .30 pliargcd into the exhaust air trunk 8 through Ithe opening 27, which is controlled by 'valve 2s. l

In place of using steam heated pipes such 19,' Imay use electric coils such as shown l,3513.630 (Fig. 3). f The temperature of the air 'asit iows froml one group of trays to the next, can be controlled by the temperature .of the steam inthe steam (pipes, or the quanof currenttransin'itte through the elecf 1' have shown my improved device'as em- '7'bodying six groups of superposed trays. Manifestlythe number of groups may be increased or decreased. Preferably, the

' number of groups should be such that with a body of air given a definite and mainftained temperature in passing all the groups, 'the air will be saturated With moisture when is emitted into the exhaust trunk.

It' Will be understood Without description ",'ondrawing -that the air received through 'the exhaust trunk can be carried through any suitable apparatus such for instance as is shown in my prior Patent No. 1,220,815

' 55 dated March 27, 1917, to remove any absorbed moisture in excess of that normal to the air, after which the air may be heated to lthe original temperature and again sent through the apparatus.

Having thus described my invention, I

claim:

' 1. The method of drying described, which consists in supplying air having a determined temperature and humidity, passing `""s'aid air over a portion of the article to be treated, then heating said air to restore 'it to its initial-temperature, then mixing said air with a fresh body of air, then transmitting said mixed bodiesof air over a second poi-- tion of the article to be treated, and repeatmg such steps over successive portions of the article until the Whole article has been subjected tothe action of the air currents.

2. The method of drying dcscribed,which consists 1n supplying air having a deter- 7 mined. temperature and humidity, passing said air over a portion of the article to be treated, then heating said air to restore vit to its initial temperature, then mixing said air with a fresh body of air, the fresh body o'f air being in amount approximately proportional t0 the increased humidity of the original body of air, then transmitting said mixed bodies of air over a second portion of the article to be treated, and repeating such steps over successive portions of the article until the whole article has been -subjected to the action of the air currents. 3. The method of drying described, which consists in supplying air having a determined temperature and humidity, passing said air successively over portions of the article to be treated, addin heat to restore the original temperature o the air, and additional air to approximately restore the absorbing value' of the air, after passin the first portion of the article to b e treate and before passing the successive portions.

4. 'The method of drying described, which consists in subjecting the article to be treated to the'successive action of air currents having a maintained temperature and approximately maintained moisture absorbing capacit 5. 1n an apparatus of the type described, the combination of an air inlet trunk, an lair outlet trunk, a series of cells, each cell consisting of a series of superposed separated groups of trays, means for feeding air to one end of each group of trays, means for boosting the temperature of the air after passing each group of trays, 'together with means for introducing additional air into the boosted air currents before passing successive groups of trays.

, 6. In an apparatus of the type described, the combination of an air inlet trunk, an air outlet trunk, a series of cells, each cell consisting of a series of superposed separated groups of trays in staggered relation, means for feeding air to one end of each group of trays, means for boosting the temperature of the air after passing each group of trays, together with mea-ns for introducing` additional air into the boosted air currents before passing successive groups of trays.

7 .v In an apparatus of the type described, the combination of an air inlet trunk, an air outlet trunk, a series of cells, each cell 130 Laeaeoo eontainin a series of superposed separated groups o trays, and means in the line of travel of the air through the successive groups of trays, for eecting a mixture of the ori 'nally introduced air and'additional air, be ore such mixed air is passed through. each successive group of trays.

8. ln an apparatus of the type described, the combination of a pump, an air inlet trunk connected to the outlet of the pump, an air outlet trunk, a series of cells interposed between the air inlet and the air outlet trunk, a series of groups of removable trays located in superposed separated staggered relation in said cells, means orieeding air oversaid trays, means for adding heat to v the air after leaving one series of trays and before passing over the next series of trays,- means for introducing additional air `and mixing it with the first named body of air before passing said mixed body of air over successive groups of trays, together With means for regulating the volume of the air current and the temperature of such air current during the passage of said air current through the cells.

ln testimony whereof, ll aiix my signature, in the resenee of two witnesses.

@EUR E HlILLARD BENJAMIN. Witnesses:

Hman E. Komen, Lnsrnn Bramsmr. 

